Island phone question

I have a phone that I got a sim card from Sharon, Queen of St Maarten phone service. I haven't used it since before Irma. I still have a bunch of time on it. Is there anywhere on island that I can take it to find out if that number is still good and get it reactivated? Thanks in advance!

If it was Chippie UTS, then the number expired after 60 days of no activity.

I kept current by putting a dollar on it every two months but I heard somewhere that they weren't working after Irma anyway

Any idea of an option to get a new sim or number to use up the money I have on the account? Or is this even possible? Thanks in advance

Oh!! That's good that you did that. It is only certain phone's that were no longer supported on SXM after Irma.

You can take that SIM and put it into another phone and still have your number! Very good that you kept it current.

Let me look back through the forum to remember what the system issue was.....I know that I bought a new phone in May on SXM to transfer my SIM card into.

Edit: I believe it was that the Chippie system no longer supported a G2 phone? Got a cute little inexpensive Samsung at Blue Point in P-Burg, which was were Rima's used to be.

Do you have the card the SIM came with. If so, you can take that to UTS and they will issue you a new sim with the same # and retained $ that will work. The SIM cards issued before Irma typically did not work when UTS came back up with a changed network.

I was able to keep my Chippie # (had the origional card, as Elaine said), but needed a new phone that was 4 G.

I was able to keep my Chippie # (had the origional card, as Elaine said), but needed a new phone that was 4 G.

Yeah, the old phones don't work anymore. Need a smart phone. Finally had to say goodbye to our flip phones!

I went to Blue Point last week to get a new phone as my old one was also 2G and would no longer work. The Samsung mini was out of stock and the cheapest they had that is Chippie compatible was $225. I walked to the UTS store and they exchanged my old SIM for a new one and all the money I still had on the old SIM remained. I then went to Klass Electronics on Front street and bought a small Nokia 3G phone for $70. It is small enough to easily fit in my pocket which is what I wanted. They even put the SIM in it for me since I wanted verification that it was compatible.

I have to ask, since we are talking phones:

We will be there for a week in the near future. Have a iPhone which I need to keep in touch with my business and maybe to use gps maps on the island and the occasional phone call.

I have zero experience with how to use phones and get sims cards and the such. Isn't it just easier to call my company, Verizon, and say I need the phone internationally? What is the benefit of getting sim cards and such? Is it a cheaper option for longer term phone use?

None, IMO. You can call your carrier, for $10.00 a day international plan is unlimited data and phone use. You only get charged if you use it. Ours through ATT always stays on our plan. Some might say that’s too much, but for us it works and it’s easy. To be honest, as advanced as phones are today with all the apps, every time this conversation comes up it really amazes me. Keep it simple, call your carrier, add the plan, and just use your phone, this is soo easy.

OK. Unless I'm missing something here....Why don't people just use the app WhatsApp? As long as both parties have the app you can talk and text all you want free of charge. I believe it uses Wifi. We just used it this past year in Aruba. Worked talking to our friends we were with on the island as well as with our family back home. Sure, there were certain parts of the hotel or island that service was a little bad, but all in all it gets the job done. Totally free.

Perhaps because a lot of folks, like me, don't have access to internet all the time.

Like I said, sometimes service is "sketchy" on different parts of the island or in the resort. Unless you need it for business and you just want to check in at home from time to time it's perfect. Also, I don't know how all this technology works, but if you have "unlimited" on your phone, don't you always have Wifi....?

We have no wifi on our phone, unless we hook up to it somewhere in a bar or restaurant or at home. I know people pay for those plans to have it all the time, but not everyone does.

Ditto. And if I'm driving and need to call someone I can, because I have the island phone and number. No wi-fi while on the beach or driving.

We used WIFI calling in November and it worked great.
No charges.
The only issue, I believe, is there will be a small charge if you are calling a local number in SXM, since it is out of the USA.
So if you want to call local restaurants for reservations, it might be a dollar or 2.


We did have international calling if there was an emergency out of a WIFI area and luckily
we never had to use it.

It would be nice to know what restaurants have Whatsapp, then you could use this app to make local calls---

There is no need for the restaurants to have the app, they only need to supply the internet feed. Now the person that you are calling on the other hand, does have to have the app installed on their device if you wish to call them. I know this new technology is confusing to some, but it’s extremely easy to master. I tell people all the time to just use it, you can’t break it. As far as us, with our international plan we had Wifi all over the island with no problems. So I guess this issue about phones comes down to a cost vs convenience factor. Just me saying

Whatsapp is an app. I you have a smart phone, you can download the app. You don't need wifi, just internet access.
Works great. We use it all the time to group chat with friend in SXM and CT. Send pics, whatever. Any phone, Samsung or IPhone.
cheers
irina

SXMFOX, I was referring to calling the restaurant for a reservation. If the restaurant has Whatsapp.

WIFI calling from your USA number, to a restaurant in SXM, has a small charge.

The restaurant doesn't need Whatsapp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You can call landline from Whatsapp. My friend called me on Whatsapp to my landline in Miami. She was in New Zealand.
Another called from Germany.
Restaurant doesn NOT need Whatsapp.
Do you know what VoiP is?

For calling GSM numbers and landlines, you need internet connection and mobile dialer on the originating side of the call.

Whatsapp is the best. We’re split between 4 different countries and I have seriously saved thousands of $$$ the past 3.5 years. If you were trying to make reservations with a restaurant, either the restaurant or the manager would have to have the app on a cellular phone and you’d have to be contacts to communicate. Plus they would need to check their messages often for it to be effective.
I think it’s a wonderful tool and it saves everyone time and money. 👍
If I ever really needed to use my carrier service, I activated it, paid about US $10 per 24 hours. (Although in my currency it translates to about $30). In my experience, wifi on the island is very weak and unreliable. But I’ve rarely needed it if wifi wasn’t available.

I also had a sim card from Sharon. I kept it active every two months and was able to transfer everything to a new sim card in November at no charge. Go to a UTS store and they will make the transfer for you and you will keep your number if you have kept it updated. If you have not kept it updated, you may lose your number and they will give you a new one. You have to have an unlocked phone to get this to work and it must be 3 or more. The old phones are no longer compatible. Good luck with your transfer.

I give up. You guys don't get it.
I have Vonage. Had it in SXM so my 85 year old mother in law could call from Boca.
She just called my Vonage number from her Boca number and it rang in SXM. I assigned a local Boca number for it.
And you can plug your Vonage phone ANYWHERE there is internet.
I still have Vonage, same number and cousin in Belize has one too.
Good luck with all your tricks and rules.
Cheers
irina

WiFI callig....it works but not for GPS maps just for calls..There is an app for that that uses no data..just GPS .......it works. Got two long calls from home today. Made one. Enough said....called Lesley (car rental) and received a call back with no charge which I didn't expect

Wifi IS internet access. Unless you have a plan on your phone, the only way to get internet is via wifi.

We also have Vonage for calling to the states. But again, you need internet access.

Thank you for all the replies. Could someone tell me where the UTS store is? I have my smart phone from home that has the international plan and Whats App on it that I will be using. I bought my island phone several years ago when it was more convenient to use a local phone. I just would like to activate my island phone and use up the money I have on it plus I can call friends on island that don't have WhatsApp.

The UTS store is in the Paradise Mall in Cole Bay.

The store I went to is in Philipsburg, a couple of blocks from the GEBE office.

Good point. I think I used Whatsapp a few years ago. my brother is a world traveler & he swears by it. I think my only issue is that I would have to find internet cafes or find public wife and I am leary about public wifi.. And like someone already said, you can use whatsapp to call a landline. My only issue is security.. And also the "free" aspect. Something for nohting always carries a risk IMHO


Agreed, that $10 a day is peace of mind, I think.

Correct...can't do "wifi" calling without "wifi"